Science, Pseudo-Science, and State Indoctrination

In a landmark case and historic victory of reason over superstition, a federal judge has ruled that a Pennsylvania school district cannot teach intelligent design in public biology courses (story here). So-called intelligent design, the newest angle of creationists in their attempts to have unscientific religious dogma taught in public schools, posits that the complex processes of evolution unfolded according to the plan of some higher power or deity. Proponents of intelligent design claim that the complexity of life on earth could not have resulted from random mutations over vast spans of time -- as theorized by evolutionary theory -- and therefore must have been directed by some sort of rational entity.

Setting aside the fact that there is absolutely no empirical evidence for such a claim (aside from the complexity of life itself, which could easily have resulted from chance mutations as described in evolutionary theory), to replace evolutionary theory with intelligent design would be to replace a scientific account with religious conjecture. Even if (and this if goes against everything we know about evolution) chance occurances could not have led to the degree of complexity in life today, there is no logical step that necessitates an omnipotent deity to have directed the development of life. "Intelligent design" is nothing more than creationism dressed up in the language of evolution, and the Pennsylvania court was correct in banning such religious dogma, even when presented as rational scientific theory.

For more on intelligent design, there is a good debate hosted by Natural History magazine here, and an account of the history of intelligent design, as well as an overview of the theory on the Intelligent Design Wikipedia entry here.

That being said, such a 'victory' also brings to light the potential for disaster in our highly centralized model of education. What is and is not acceptable to be taught to children as history and science is determined almost exclusively by government agents who have a clear vested interest in the propagation of the state and in the distortion of history so as to place the United States in a positive light. In this case, what is to be taught in public schools happens to be scientific and valid, however a great deal of what is taught as 'history' in public schools is just as absurd as the 'theory' of intelligent design.

Consider which presidents are glorified in public school history books: wartime presidents and presidents who oversaw huge expansions of government power. Consider which presidents are belittled and mocked: the "do-nothing" presidents who neither started wars nor pushed for large expansions in government. Every history, government, social studies, and economics course taught in a public school leaves the student with a strong bias in favor of war, government intervention, communalism, bureaucracy, and totalitarian extremes.

A lifelong process of government indoctrination and propaganda begins in the public schools to which Americans are forced to send their young children. Why exactly would the government make school attendance mandatory (in such a way that discourages home schooling and private schooling), unless they had a vested interest in forming the basic prejudices of every child born in the country? The answer is obvious, as are the great benefits to be gained by the government by filling childrens' impressionable minds with patriotic nationalist blather. Without such thorough indoctrination, where would the government find sufficient numbers of volunteers willing to die for the very entity which robs them and restricts their freedom?

The amount of time and dedication it takes to override the subconscious pro-government prejudices instilled in early childhood is amazing. Most Americans can take nowhere near the amount of time necessary to investigate the truth and how it differs from what they have been taught their whole lives, and the result is a populace largely supportive of almost whatever the government puts in front of them. That American teachers can vilify Communist "re-education" and indoctrination while supporting the same sort of propaganda campaign in America is testament to the totality of our government's control over thought.

Next time you catch yourself thinking about some political issue, such as the moral basis for taxation, the government's monopoly on force, or anything similar, take a second to analyze your inner bias and your subconscious emotional responses to anti-government rhetoric. What you find may surprise you.